Method and apparatus for space dyeing yarn

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for producing randomly or space dyed skeins of yarn and wherein the skeins are initially arranged to form a bank of side by side, downwardly hanging skeins, and the bank is then completely immersed in a heated aqueous bath to bulk and heat set the yarns. The bank is then removed from the aqueous bath and completely immersed in a first dye bath to apply a first color to the entire skein. When the first dye bath is substantially exhausted, the bank is lifted and a second dyestuff is added directly to the exhausted first dye bath to form a second dye bath which is adapted to color the yarn a second predetermined color. The bank is then partially immersed in the second dye bath to a predetermined depth, and the bank may be tilted so that some of the skeins are further immersed than others so that the skeins have varying color patterns. The above procedure may be repeated for applying additional colors to the yarns if so desired.

United States Patent 1191 OMahony et al.

[ METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SPACE DYEING YARN [75] Inventors: Gerard M.OMahony, Dalton, Ga.; James G. T. Paterson, Chattanooga, Tenn.

[73] Assignee: Interdye Technology Corporation,

Dalton, Ga.

[22] Filed: Jan. 2, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 429,934

[52] US. Cl. 8/14; 8/149; 8/1552; 28/75 WT; 68/188; 68/199 [51] Int.Cl." D06B 11/00 [58] Field of Search 8/14, 149, 150, 15, 155.2; 28/75WT; 68/188, 197, 199, 206, 159, 165,

[ Dec. 16, 1975 Primary Examiner-Harvey C. Homsby AssistantExaminer-Philip R. Coe

Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Parrott, Bell, Seltzer, Park & Gibson [5 7]ABSTRACT A method and apparatus for producing randomly or space dyedskeins of yarn and wherein the skeins are initially arranged to form abank of side by side, downwardly hanging skeins, and the bank is thencompletely immersed in a heated aqueous bath to bulk and heat set theyarns. The bank is then removed from the aqueous bath and completelyimmersed in a first dye bath to apply a first color to the entire skein.When the first dye bath is substantially exhausted, the bank is liftedand a second dyestuff is added directly to the 5 References Citedexhausted first dye bath to form a second dye bath which is adapted tocolor the yarn a second predeter- UNITED STATES PATENTS mined color. Thebank is then partially immersed in 1,906,492 5/1933 Spmdler 8/1552 thesecond dye h to a predetermined depth and 3:332 llvebber 25 the bank maybe tilted so that some of the skeins are 27l6585 8/1955 5 I sll'4further immersed than others so that the skeins have 31012503 12/1961whitak'i'1ZifIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII'ism varyingmb' f abOVe procedure may3,356,444 12/1967 Haworth et 8/14 x repeated for pp y addmoflal colorsto the Y If 3,541,635 11/1970 Crenshaw et a1. s/|ss.2 SO desired-FORElGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 16 Claims 18 Drawing Figures 1,958,6495/1971 Germany 8/15 B DYE SKEINING ULK AND COMPLETESKElNS HEAT SET WH'HFnesr Comte OveeoYE EXTRACT PREDETEBMISNED Peer/ens REPEAT Swap 4 DYE-OF KEINS D WITH SECOND (101.012, As REQU'R'ED AN DRYSKENS DYE- COMPLETESKE NS WITH FIRST COLOR,

BULK AND HEAT SET ExTraAcT DYE AND DEYSKEINS REPEAT STEP 4 As REQUIREDSKEINING OVERDYE PEEDETEENINED DOBTIONS oFSKEms WITH SECOND (101.012

US. Patent Dec. 16,1975 Sheet 2 of4 3,926,547

aw w. s

US. Patent Dec. 16, 1975 Sheet 3 of4 3,926,547

wfiww M r W m METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SPACE DYEING YARN The presentinvention relates to a method for producing randomly or space dyed yarnssuitable for use in fabricating multi-colored shag type tufted carpetsand the like, and characterized by deep, bright colors, high bulk, andthe ability to substantially alleviate visible streaks on the face ofthe finished carpet caused by a similar repeating color pattern on theyarns.

There are several known processes for producing space dyed yarn for usein fabricating multi-colored fabrics. One common process of this type iscalled the knit de knit" process, and includes the steps of knitting theyam into a knitted prefabric, applying stripes or other patterns of dyeon the fabric by a printing operation, heat setting the dye, and thenunraveling the fabric to produce a space dyed yarn. The heat settingoperation tends to set permanent kinks or curls in the yam due to theloops produced in knitting, and it is common to attempt to subsequentlyremove these kinks by various processes such as running the kinked yarnover a series of comers. A typical process of this type is furtherdescribed in the U.S. Patents to Whitaker et al., US. Pat. Nos.3,012,303 and 3,102,322.

Even where attempts are made to remove as many of the kinks and curls aspossible from knit de knit" yarn, the resulting yarn neverthelesspossesses a considerable amount of kinking, and such kinking isunsuitable in many applications such as where long shag or plush carpetsare to be constructed from the yarn. Further, the attempts to remove thekink tend to draw out the yarn, and thus a considerable portion of thebulk or covering ability of the yarn is lost.

One further disadvantage of the knit de knit" process is the fact thatthe colors are applied by a printing operation, and such operation byits very nature is unable to achieve thorough penetration of the dyeinto the yarn. Also, when certain yarns such as nylon are printed, truecolors are not achieved due to a "frosting or halo effect which iscaused by the printing mechanism.

Another commonly employed process for producing space dyed yarnsinvolves passing a large number (or warp) of yarns in a parallelarrangement through a series of dye applicators that are charged withdyes of different colors. As the warp of yarns passes through themachine, predetermined portions are pressed into contact with selectedapplicators to achieve the desired space printing. The yarns are thensteamed to fix the dye. A typical process of this type is disclosed inthe US. Patent to Farrer et al., US. Pat. No. 3,503,232.

While the warp printing operation achieves a straight, non-kinked yarnwhich is desirable for plush or shag type constructions, the fact thatconsiderable stress is placed on the yarns during the printing andsteaming operations results in a significant loss of bulk which cannotbe recovered. Also, since a dye printing operation is involved, deeppenetration of dye into the yarn cannot be achieved.

It has also been proposed to employ a skein dyeing process for producingspace dyed yarns. In the process as presently practiced, the skeins areinitially heated in a dry heating apparatus or autoclave to bulk andheat set the yarns. and the skeins are then mounted on a rack andcompletely immersed in a liquid dye bath which contains a dyestuffadapted to apply the lightest shade of the color selection involved. Thetemperature of the dye bath when the skeins are immersed is necessarilyrelatively low, for example about F and the temperature must then begradually increased at a rate of about 2 per minute to the boilingtemperature. which is about 220 F. It is not possible to immerse theskeins in a bath having a temperature above about 120 F., since at anelevated temperature the dye will tend to jump on" the yarn when it isimmersed. and thus the dye will not be applied evenly.

After reaching the boiling temperature, the skeins are held immersed forabout ten minutes to exhaust the dyestuff. The bath is then dropped, theskeins lifted, and a fresh load of water is run into the vat and itstemperature adjusted to about 120 F. A second dyestuff is then addedwhich when overdyed on the previously dyed yarns will give the desiredcolor of the next darkest shade. The skeins are partially immersed inthe second bath, and the temperature again slowly raised to the boilingtemperature and held for another ten minutes to exhaust the dyestuff.The above procedures are repeated for the third and any subsequentdyeing operations, differing only in that each subsequent skeinimmersion is less than in the preceeding operation.

It is recognized that skein dyeing is able to achieve deep, brightcolors in the dyed yarns, this advantage arising from the fact thatskein dyeing takes place under optimum conditions of time, temperature,and dye exhaustion which cannot be achieved in a printing operation.Also, skein dyeing results in a high bulk which arises from the relaxed,tension free conditions which exist while the yarn is in skein form andbeing dyed.

While the skein dyeing process as presently practiced possesses theabove recognized advantages, skein dyeing has not been extensivelyemployed since as presently practiced it produces a similar long space"repeating color pattern on all of the yarns which has a tendency toproduce streaks or chevrons on the face of the finished pile fabric.More particularly, where such a repeating color pattern is present onthe yarns, the colors of adjacent yarns in the finished fabric tend toget into and out of phase in a regular sequence, and this producesvisible streaks. Such streaks are not as pronounced where a short space"color pattern is achieved, and such short space" pattern is easilyproduced by the above dye printing operations. Also, as will be apparentfrom the above description, the skein dyeing process as presentlypracticed has a very low production rate as compared to that of theprinting processes. Thus while skein dyeing possesses recognizedadvantages, it has not found commercial acceptance because of theseoverriding disadvantages.

It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a methodfor space dyeing a plurality of skeins of textile yarn and wherein thedyed skeins have varying color patterns so that visible streaks orchevrons" on the face of the resulting fabric are substantiallyeliminated.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method forspace dyeing yarn which is characterized by deep, bright colors. highbulk, and the absence of kinks or curls in the yarn.

it is a further object of the present invention to provide a method forspace dyeing skeins of yarn and which is adapted to achieve a highproduction rate and wherein a large quantity of yarn having the samespecifications of color, bulk, and other physical properties 3 can beproduced.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a methodfor space dyeing skeins of yarn wherein the dye bath is not dropped atthe end of each dyeing operation, but rather the exhausted bath isfurther utilized by adding thereto a preselected dye which has beenpreviously determined will produce the desired color when added to theexhausted dye bath.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method forspace dyeing skeins of yarn which incorporates a wet heat settingoperation in association with the dyeing operations such that the yarnsare in a receptive state when immersed in the dye bath.

These and other objects and advantages of the pres ent invention areachieved by a method wherein a bank of skeins is initially immersed in aheated aqueous bath to bulk and heat set the yarns. The bank is thenremoved from the aqueous bath and a dyestuff is added thereto so that afirst dye bath is formed from the aqueous bath. The bank is thencompletely immersed in the first dye bath to apply a first color to theentire skeins, and the bank is maintained therein until the dye bath issubstantially exhausted. The bank is then lifted from the exhaustedfirst dye bath and a second dyestuff is added to the exhausted first dyebath to form a second dye bath adapted to color the yarn a secondpredetermined color. The bank is then partially immersed in the seconddye bath so that the second dye bath acts to color only the immersedportions of the skeins. In order to achieve a varying color pattern onthe skeins, provision is made for tilting the bank of skeins so thatsome of the skeins are further immersed than others.

If it is desired to apply a third color to the skeins, the bank is againlifted and a third dyestuff is added to the exhausted dye bath, and thebank is then again partially immersed in the third dye bath to a levelless than the skeins were immersed in the second dye bath. To furthervary the color patterns of the skeins, the bank may be tilted into asomewhat different orientation than was the case when the bank waspartially immersed in the second dye bath. The above procedure may berepeated for applying additional colors to the yarns if so desired.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other objectswill appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection withthe accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a schematic flow diagramillustrating the basic steps of a process embodying the presentinvention;

FIGS. 2, 2A and 2B illustrate the sequence for applying three colors tothe skeins in accordance with the present invention and wherein the bankof skeins is not tilted;

FIGS. 3, 3A and 3B are similar to FIGS. 2, 2A and 2B, but illustrate theeffect of tilting the bank of yarn skeins during the second and thirddyeing operations;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a skein dyeing apparatus which embodiesthe features of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of one skein rack and a portion of theoverhead lifting harness of the apparatus as shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, exploded, perspective view showing the mannerin which the skein rack rests upon the underlying dye tubes of thecarriage;

FIG. 7 is an end view of arrangement shown in FIG.

FIGS. 8-11 are schematic perspective views illustrating the various waysin which the skein rack may be tilted with respect to the dye bath toachieve varying color patterns on the skeins;

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of the lifting harness, skeinracks, carriage, and dye vat of the apparatus illustrated in FIG. 4;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view illustrating the use of power jacks fortilting the bank of skeins along one axis; and

FIG. 14 is a view similar to FIG. 13 but illustrating the use offourpower jacks so that the skein rack may be selectively tilted alongtwo axes.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, an apparatus embodying thefeatures of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 4-7 and 12.The illustrated apparatus includes an open, rectangular dye vat 20 whichis adapted to receive a dye bath 2] or other liquid therein. The vatitself is generally conventional, and includes a suitable inlet andoutlet (not shown) for facilitating the filling and emptying of theliquid, and a false bottom wall 22 having a plurality of openings 23therein and through which the liquid is able to freely pass to the areabeneath the wall 22. An external dye bowl 24 is provided for permittinga dyestuff to be added to the liquid in the vat, and a circulationsystem is provided which includes a pump 25 and a pair of outletopenings 26 in the bottom" wall 22 for the purposes hereinafter setforth. Also, a heating coil (not shown) may be positioned beneath thefalse bottom wall 22 to provide means for heating the liquid in the vat.

A carriage 28 is removably mounted within the vat 20 such that theentire carriage may be vertically translated into the vat to assume anoperative position as hereinafter further described. The carriage 28includes a base 29 which is adapted to rest upon the bottom wall 22 ofthe vat when the carriage is placed in its operative position within thevat, a plurality of vertical posts 30 extending upwardly from the base29, and a horizon tally directed tubular manifold 32. For the reasonsset forth below, the base 29 includes a pair of downwardly facingopenings at 31 which are adapted to cooperate with the openings 26 inthe bottom wall 22 when the carriage is received in the vat in itsoperative position so that the liquids pumped upwardly through theopenings 26 will enter the openings in the base 29. Also, the base 29and vertical posts 30 include an internal passageway (not shown) suchthat the liquid may be directed upwardly from the openings 31 in thebase 29 to the manifold 32.

Three upwardly directed lifting brackets 33 are fixedly carried on theupper surface of the manifold 32, and a plurality of spaced apart,parallel dye tubes 34 emanate outwardly from each side of the manifoldto define two oppositely extending rows of tubes 35 and 36. The tubesextend horizontally, and are designed to be positioned somewhat belowthe liquid level of the bath 21 when the vat is substantially filled andthe carriage 28 is positioned therewithin in its operative position. Asbest seen in FIG. 6, each dye tube is hollow and communicates with thehollow manifold 32. Also, each dye tube includes a row of spacedapertures 38 extending along the upper surface thereof.

As will be apparent from the above description, the vat 20 and carriage28 include a cooperating circulation system for continuously circulatingthe liquid in the vat through the carriage and outwardly through theapertures 28 in the dye tubes 34. More particularly, the liquid in thevat flows through the openings 23 in the false bottom wall 22, and isdirected by the pump 25 upwardly through the outlet openings 26. Theliquid is then channeled into the manifold 32 and hollow dye tubes 34,and then upwardly through the apertures 28 to return to the vat.

The illustrated apparatus further includes a total of four racks whichare configured so as to be able to supportingly rest upon the carriage.More particularly, each rack is designed to overlie one-half of the areaof each of the rows 35, 36 of tubes as best seen in FIG. 12. Also, eachrack 40 comprises a rectangular framework which includes a plurality oftransversely spaced apart, parallel arms 42 of substantially equallength. The arms 42 are aligned in the transverse direction such thatthe ends thereof define a rear edge and a forward edge of the framework,and each arm 42 comprises two transversely spaced apart, parallel rods44, 45 as best seen in FIGS. 57. Also, an arcuately shaped saddle 46 iscarried at each end of each arm to interconnect the two rods, and thesaddle at the forward edge of each arm includes an upwardly directed tab47 which extends between the two rods. An aperture 48 extendstransversely through the tab for the purposes hereinafter set forth.

A rear brace 49 extends along the rear edge of the rack and is fixedlyinterconnected to each of the arms. A forward brace 50 extends along theforward edge of the rack and is releasably connected to each of thearms. More particularly, the forward brace 50 includes a transverselyextending angle beam 51 having a plurality of slots 52 therein, witheach slot being adapted to receive the apertured tab 47 of one of thearms 42. A cylindrical retaining rod 54 is adapted to then extendthrough the apertures 48 in the tabs 47 of each arm to maintain theassembly of the angle beam 51 and thus the forward brace 50 to the rack.As will be apparent, the forward brace 50 may be removed by simplywithdrawing the rod 54 and lifting the brace away.

Both the rear brace 49 and forward brace 50 include a pair of spacedU-shaped lifting rings 56 for supporting the rack in a mannerhereinafter further described. The lifting rings 56 are positionedadjacent the ends of each associated brace, and thus one is positionedadjacent each of the four comers of the rectangular framework of therack 40.

As best seen in FIGS. 6-7, the arms 42 of each rack are arranged toconform to the arrangement of the dye tubes 34 on the carriage 28 suchthat the rack may be positioned to supportingly rest upon the carriage.In this regard, it will be noted that the saddles 46 on the arms conformto the curvature of the cylindrical dye tubes to prevent relativeshifting movement, and the rods 44, 45 of each arm are positioned to liealong each side of the row of apertures 38 in the underlying dye tube sothat the arm does not interfere with the upward flow of the liquid fromthe apertures in the dye tube. As will be hereinafter further described,the above structure of the rack and dye tubes permits a plurality ofskeins S of textile yarn to be positioned to encircle each arm and itsassociated dye tube to thereby form a bank of adjacent, side by side,downwardly hanging skeins as best seen in FIG. 4. The skeins may bearranged to form such bank by removing the forward brace 50 in the abovedescribed manner, and then sliding the skeins axially along each arm andunderlying dye tube.

The illustrated apparatus further includes a lifting harness 60 which isadapted to be positioned above the vat for independently supporting allof the racks 40. More particularly, the lifting harness 60 includes ahorizontally directed central I-beam 62, and four transversely extendingsupport arms 64 which are fixedly attached to the I-beam in the mannerbest seen in FIG. 4. In addition, a total of three lifting brackets 65are fixedly attached to the I-beam and positioned in spaced relationalong the length thereof.

Each of the support arms 64 includes provision for mounting a pair ofspaced cables or chains 66 from each side of the I-beam. The chains 66extend downwardly from the harness and are attached to the lifting rings56 of the racks 40 so that the racks may be releasably interconnected tothe harness. More particularly, each chain 66 is looped through one ofthe lifting rings, and a hook 68 is attached at the lower end of eachchain so that the chain may be adjusted in effective length by manuallyadjusting the point at which the hook is interconnected to the chain. Bythis arrangement, the orientation of each rack 40 may be manuallyadjusted such that the rack may be tilted along either of two differentaxes in relation to the liquid level in the vat 20. Also, each rack maybe totally released from the harness so that the racks rest upon and areentirely supported by the carriage in the manner described above.

An electric hoist 70 or the like is slideably carried by a beam 72 whichis fixedly positioned above the vat 20 in the manner best seen in FIG.4. The hoist 70 includes a downwardly directed cable 74 and hook 75which may be lowered and elevated in a conventional manner. Also, threecables 77, 78, and 79 extend from the hook 75 to the lifting brackets 65on the harness 60. By this arrangement, the operator of the apparatus isable to lower or lift the harnessand thus the racks in a selectedmanner. Also, when the harness is released from both the hoist 70 andracks 40, the hoist and cables 77, 78 and 79 may be attached to thelifting brackets 33 of the carriage 28 so that the entire carriage 28and supported skein racks 40 may be vertically translated into and outof the vat.

A method of randomly dyeing a plurality of skeins of textile yarnemploying the above apparatus and in accordance with the presentinvention will now be described. In this regard, it will be noted thatthe method and apparatus of the present invention is particularly suitedfor space dyeing nylon and polyester yarn, although it is also suitablefor processing wool, cotton, acrylic, and other polymeric yarns.

To prepare the apparatus, the carriage 28 with the racks 40 restingthereon is initially lifted from the vat 20 and placed on a wheeleddolly (not shown) so that the entire assembly may be easily transportedto a suitable work area. In addition, the front brace 50 of each of theracks 40 is removed after withdrawing the retaining rods 54.

The yarns are skeined in a conventional manner, and the individualskeins are loaded onto the assembly by sliding the skeins axially ontoeach arm and its underlying dye tube so as to encircle the same and forma bank of side by side, downwardly hanging skeins. When all of the armson each rack are fully loaded, the front brace 50 is lowered over thetabs 47 and attached to the rack by inserting the rod 54. The loadedcarriage is then wheeled back to the vat 20 where the hoist 70 isattached by interconnecting the cables 77, 78, and 79 to 7 the liftingbrackets 33 of the carriage. The assembly is then lifted, moved intoposition over the vat 20, and dropped into the vat so that the carriageassumes its operative position.

The vat initially contains boiling water, and the skeins are completelyimmersed therein for a period of about ten minutes to bulk and heat setthe yarn. In this regard, the circulation system will be directing thewater upwardly through the apertures 38 in each of the dye tubes so thatthe skeins effectively float above the arms and dye tube. Thus there islittle or no tension on the yarns to resist the development of bulk.

During the bulking operation, the operator removes the cables 77, 78,and 79 from the carriage and attaches the same to the lifting bracket 65of the harness 60 which may be positioned immediately adjacent the vat.The harness is then lifted by the hoist 70 to a position immediatelyabove the vat, and the chains 66 are inserted through the lifting rings56 of the racks and the hooks 68 attached at a predetermined point toform a connection of predetermined length. Normally, at this point inthe process, the chains would be connected so that the racks wouldremain substantially level when the harness is lifted.

Upon completion of the bulking and heat setting operation, the harness60 may be lifted by the hoist 70 so that the skeins are substantiallycompletely withdrawn from the aqueous bath so as to facilitatecirculation of the subsequently added dyestuff as described below. Sincethe dye tubes 34 are normally positioned below the level of the bath, itwould be necessary to drop a portion of the bath from the vat if theskeins were to be completely withdrawn therefrom, however, completewithdrawal is not generally necessary.

To prepare the first dye bath, the water in the vat is cooled to about180 F. by adding cold water, and a concentrated dyestufi' is added tothe cooled liquid through the bowl 24. The harness 60 is then lowered sothat the bank of skeins is completely immersed in the first dye bath.'The temperature of the bath is then raised at a rate of about 2 perminute to the boiling temperature of the bath which is about 220 F. Thebank of skeins is maintained in the boiling dye bath until the dye bathis substantially exhausted, and this normally takes about ten minutesafter the bath reaches the boiling temperature. During the dyeingoperation, the circulation system causes the dye bath to be directedupwardly through the apertures 38 in the dye tubes to thereby lift theskeins out of substantial contact with the arms and tubes. This liftingaction removes any tension in the yarn, and it insures that there willbe no stagnant areas where the skeins contact the arm or tube and whichcould result in shade variation or stick marking at that point.

Where the wet bulking and heat setting operation of the presentinvention is employed, it has been found that the initial dye bath maybe maintained at a temperature of about l80 F. when the skeins areimmersed since the yarn has been partially swelled by the bulking andheat setting operation, and it is in a highly receptive state whereinthe dye may be applied in a level fashion at an elevated temperature.This fact serves to substantially reduce the time required to raise thebath to the boiling temperature of 220 F. as compared to the abovedescribed conventional skein dyeing process, and thus the productiontime of the present dyeing operation is substantially reduced.

Upon exhaustion of the first dye bath, the bank of skeins is at leastpartially withdrawn therefrom, and typically the bank is completelywithdrawn from the exhausted dye bath by lifting the harness anddropping a small portion of the bath from the vat so as to achievemaximum circulation. A second dyestuff is then added to the exhaustedfirst dye bath through the bowl 24, and by design, the second dyestuffis adapted to provide the desired color and shade when added to theexhausted first dye bath to color the yarn a second predetermined color.Thus the heated first bath is not dropped and lost, but is utilized inthe subsequent dyeing operations to further increase the efficiency ofthe process.

The bank of skeins is then partially immersed in the second dye bathsuch that the second dye bath acts to color only the immersed portionsof the skeins. In this regard, the rack may be oriented or tilted inrelation to the liquid level so that some of the skeins are partiallyimmersed in the second dye bath further than others, whereby the skeinshave a varying color pattern as illustrated for example in FIG. 3A. Thisadjustment of die orientation of the rack may be accomplished bymanually changing the effective length of the chains 66.

In view of the efficiency of the above described circulation system inthe vat 20 and carriage 28 of the appa ratus, it is possible to lift thebank of skeins only an incremental distance from the exhausted first dyebath, rather than completely withdrawing the skeins in the mannerdescribed above. Thus the skeins may be initially positioned in theorientation desired for the second dyeing operation while they arepartially immersed in the exhausted first dye bath, and the seconddyestuff may then be added in the bowl 24. Also, through care fulselection of the second dyestuff, and since the fiber is in a highlyreceptive state, it is not necessary to cool the bath to 180 F. and heatit slowly to the boiling point in order to get level dyeing as wasrequired in the case of the first dyeing operation. Thus the dye bathmay be maintained at the boil and the time requirement for the seconddyeing operation is thereby significantly reduced.

Upon exhaustion of the second dye bath, a third dyeing operation may beperformed by repeating the steps of the second operation. In this case,the added third dyestuff would be designed to provide the desired thirdcolor and shade when added to the exhausted second dye bath. Inaddition, the orientation of the racks may be changed from that employedin the second dyeing operation so that those skeins which were partiallyimmersed further in the second dye bath are not among those which arepartially immersed further in the third dye bath. This serves to furthervary the color patterns of the skeins, note for example, the skeinsillustrated in FIG. 3B. As will be apparent, each skein is immersed inthe third dye bath to a level less than such skein was immersed in thesecond bath so that only the lowermost portions of the skeins will beoverdyed with the third dyestuff. Also, the arrangement or rotationalorientation of the skeins on the racks should not be disturbed betweenthe second and third dyeing operations if the desired color pattern isto be achieved. While three dyeing operations have been describedherein, it will be appreciated that additional dyeing operations couldbe employed where a larger number of colors is desired.

When the dyeing operations are completed, the dye bath is dropped fromthe vat 20, and the harness 60 is removed by disconnecting the chains 66from the racks 40 and the cables 77, 78, and 79 from the harness. Thehoist 70 is then connected to the lifting brackets 33 of the carriage,and the loaded carriage and racks are lifted from the vat and againpositioned on the wheeled dolly for transport to a work area. Theforward braces 50 are removed from the racks, and the skeins may then bewithdrawn from the arms. The skeins are typically then subjected toconventional water extracting and drying operations. In the case ofcertain fibers such as polyester, it may also be necessary to rinse theskeins prior to water extraction to remove certain carriers and otherchemicals before the yarn is dried.

In the above described process, the aqueous bath employed in bulking andheat setting the yarns is utilized in the subsequent space dyeingoperation. As an alternative to this procedure, a separate bulking andheat setting bath may be provided which is continuously kept chargedwith boiling water. Thus a single bulking and heat setting bath wouldserve several vats filled with the dye bath, and the carriage 28 andracks 40 with the loaded skeins would be transferred from the heatsetting bath to the dye vat after the bulking and heat setting operationis completed.

FIGS. 8-1 1 schematically illustrate the various ways in which each ofthe racks 40 may be tilted to achieve varying color patterns in the bankof skeins. In FIG. 8, the chains 66 to the four comers of the rack areof equal length so that the rack is substantially level. Suchorientation would be employed to achieve the similar color patterns inthe skeins as shown in FIGS. 2, 2A, and 2B.

In FIG. 9, the two far side chains have been shortened an equal amountso that the rack is tilted along the transverse axis. In FIG. 10, thetwo chains along the far end have been shortened to tilt the rack alongthe longitudinal axis, and in FIG. 11, three of the chains have beenshortened to tilt the rack about both the longitudinal and transverseaxes.

FIG. 13 represents an arrangement for facilitating the orientation ofthe racks, and includes a pair of power jacks 82, 83 which are adaptedto raise and lower the associated connecting rods 82, 83' so that therack may be rotated about the longitudinal axis. The jacks 82, 83 may beconnected to suitable controls to permit the operator to adjust theorientation from a remote location.

FIG. 14 shows an arrangement similar to that shown in FIG. 13 butincluding four power jacks 85, 86, 87 and 88 so that each corner of therack may be independently raised and lowered to permit rotation aboutboth the longitudinal and transverse axes. As will be apparent, the useof a system of power jacks as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 lends itself toan automated program control to further increase the efiiciency of theprocess.

As a typical example of a color combination suitable for use with thepresent invention, a yellow dyestuff such as Disperse Yellow 3 may beadded to the aqueous bath employed in the bulking and heat settingoperation to initially apply a yellow shade as seen at 91 in FIGS. 2 and3. The second dyestuff may comprise a blue, such as Acid Blue 27. Whenblue is overdyed upon yellow, a green shade 92 will result as seen inFIGS. 2A and 3A. For the third dyestuff, a red such as Acid Red 57 maybe employed. When the red is overdyed upon the green, a brown color 93will be produced as seen in FIGS. 28 and 3B. The resulting skeins willthus be dyed yellow on the uppermost portions, green along the midportions, and brown on the lowermost portions. Typically, the amount ofdyestuff added to the bath will be about 0.25 percent of the weight ofthe yarn to be dyed for each of the above colors. Also, it will beunderstood that the dye bath 21 may also include suitable wettingagents, PH control agents, and other chemicals as well known in the art.

The above described process and apparatus can also be employed in aresist or indirect space dyeing process. In such a process, the resistchemicals would be applied as the dyestufi' in the above describedprocess. Thus, by selecting the resist chemicals properly, and byapplying them in the same way as in the space dyeing operation describedabove, the skeins will become space sensitized to specific dyestuffs.Subsequently, the space sensitized skeins are immersed in a dye bathcontaining all of the various colored dyestuffs to which it has beensensitized, and in this way the skeins become space dyed.

The process and apparatus of the present invention also lends itself toa related fonn of space dyeing which is termed shade variation orwithdrawal dyeing. Here, only one color of the dyestufi is used, and theimmersion time of the various portions of the skeins in the bath isvaried. Thus for example, a continuous shade variation from near whiteto the full color development of complete dyeing may be obtained byslowly withdrawing the skeins out of the dye bat as the dyeing proceeds.As will be apparent, the top of the skeins will receive little or nodyestuff while the bottom portions will be completely dyed, and therewill be a continuous shade variation therebetween. Also, this shadevariation may be obtained by a short incremental withdrawal, instead ofa continuous withdrawal, and by tilting the rack during the withdrawaloperation, some of the skeins will be partially immersed further thanothers during the withdrawal operation such that the skeins will havevarying color patterns.

In the drawings and specification, there has been set forth a preferredembodiment of the invention, and although specific terms are employed,they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not forpurposes of limitation.

That which is claimed is:

I. A method of producing space dyed yarns suitable for use infabricating multi-colored tufted carpets and the like, and characterizedby deep, bright colors, high bulk, and the substantial elimination ofstreaks on the face of the resulting carpet caused by a similarrepeating color pattern on the yarns, and comprising the steps ofarranging a plurality of skeins of textile yarn to form a bank of sideby side, downwardly hanging skeins, completely immersing the bank in afirst dye bath to apply a first color to the entire skeins, and thenpartially immersing the bank in a second dye bath of a color differentfrom that of the first dye bath and so that some of the skeins arepartially immersed further than others to thereby apply a second coloronly to the immersed portions of the skeins and such that the skeinshave varying color patterns.

2. The method as defined in claim 1 comprising the further subsequentstep of partially immersing the bank in a third dye bath of a colordifferent from that of each of the first and second dye baths and sothat each skein is immersed to a level less than such skein waspartially 1 1 immersed in the second dye bath to thereby apply a thirdcolor only to the portions of the skeins immersed in the third dye bath.

3. The method as defined in claim 2 wherein some of the skeins arepartially immersed in the third dye bath further than others toadditionally vary the color patterns of the skeins.

4. The method as defined in claim 3 wherein at least some of the skeinswhich were partially immersed further in the second dye bath are notamong those skeins which are partially immersed further in the third dyebath.

5. The method as defined in claim 4 wherein the step of bulking and heatsetting the yarn includes completely immersing the bank of skeins in aheated aqueous bath.

6. The method as defined in claim 1 comprising the further step ofbulking and heat setting the yarn prior to immersing the bank of skeinsin the first dye bath.

7. A method of producing spaced dyed yarns suitable for use infabricating multi-colored tufted carpets and the like, and characterizedby deep, bright colors, high bulk, and high production capacity, andcomprising the steps of arranging a plurality of skeins of textile yarnto form a bank of side by side, downwardly hanging skeins, completelyimmersing the bank in a first dye bath to apply a first color to theentire skeins, maintaining the bank immersed in the first dye bath untilsuch dye bath is substantially exhausted,

at least partially removing the bank from the exhausted first dye bath,

adding a dyestuff to the exhausted first dye bath to form a second dyebath adapted to color the yarn a second predetermined color, and

partially immersing the bank in the second dye bath such that the seconddye bath acts to color only the immersed portions of the skeins.

8. the method as defined in claim 7 including the further step ofbulking and heat setting the yarn prior to immersing the bank of skeinsin the first dye bath.

9. The method as defined in claim 8 wherein some of the skeins arepartially immersed in the second dye bath further than others such thatthe skeins have varying color patterns.

10. The method as defined in claim 9 comprising the further subsequentstep of partially immersing the bank in a third dye bath of a colordifferent from that of each of the first and second dye baths and sothat each skein is immersed to a level less than such skein was immersedin the second dye bath and further wherein some of the skeins arepartially immersed in the third dye bath further than others to therebyapply a third color only to the immersed portions of the skeins and tofurther vary the color patterns of the skeins.

11. A method of producing space dyed yarns suitable for use infabricating multi-colored tufted carpets and the like, and characterizedby deep, bright colors, high bulk, and high production capacity, andcomprising the steps of arranging a plurality of skeins of textile yarnto form a bank of side by side, downwardly hanging skeins, completelyimmersing the bank in a heated aqueous bath to bulk and heat set theyarns, then 12 completely immersing the bank in a first dye bath toapply a first color to the entire skeins, maintaining the bank immersedin the first dye bath until such dye bath is substantially exhausted,

at least partially removing the bank from the exhausted first dye bath,adding a second dyestuff to the exhausted first dye bath to form asecond dye bath adapted to color the yarn a second predetermined color,and

partially immersing the bank in the second dye bath such that the seconddye bath acts to color only the immersed portions of the skeins.

12. The method as defined in claim 11 comprising the further steps ofremoving the bank from the aqueous bath after the bulking and heatsetting has been substantially completed, and then adding a dyestufi' tothe aqueous bath so that the first dye bath is formed from the aqueousbath.

I3. The method as defined in claim 12 wherein some of the skeins arepartially immersed in the second dye bath further than others such thatthe skeins have varying color patterns.

14. The method as defined in claim 13 comprising the further subsequentsteps of maintaining the bank partially immersed in the second dye bathuntil such bath is substantially exhausted,

at least partially removing the bank from the exhausted second dye bath,

adding a third dyestuff to the exhausted second dye bath to form a thirddye bath adapted to color the yarn a third predetermined color, and

partially immersing the bank in the third dye bath so that each skein isimmersed to a level less than such skein was immersed in the second dyebath and wherein some of the skeins are partially immersed in the thirddye bath further than others to thereby apply a third color only to theimmersed portions of the skeins and to further vary the color patternsof the skeins.

15. A method of producing space dyed yarns suitable for use infabricating tufted carpets and the like, and characterized by deep,bright colors, high bulk, and the substantial elimination of streaks onthe face of the resulting carpet caused by a similar repeating colorpattern on the yarns, and comprising the steps of arranging a pluralityof skeins of textile yarn to form a bank of side by side, downwardlyhanging skeins, completely immersing the bank in a dye bath, and

then

slowly withdrawing the bank from the dye bath during the dyeingoperation and while maintaining the bank in a tilted relationship withrespect to the dye bath so that some of the skeins will be partiallyimmersed further than others during the withdrawal operation and suchthat the skeins will have a varying color pattern.

16. The method as defined in claim 15 comprising the further step ofcompletely immersing the bank of skeins in a heated aqueous bath to bulkand heat set the yarn prior to immersing the bank in the dye bath.

1. A METHOD OF PRODUCING SPACE DYED YARNS SUITABLE FOR USE INFABRICATING MULTI-COLORED TUFTED CARPETS AND THE LIKE, AND CHARACTERIZEDBY DEEP, BRIGHT COLORS, HIGH BULK, AND THE SUBSTANTIAL ELIMINATION OFSTREAKS ON THE FACE OF THE RESULTING CARPET CAUSED BY A SIMILARREPEATING COLOR PATTERN ON THE YARNS AND COMPRISING THE STEPS OFARRANGING A PLURALITY OF SKEINS OF TEXTILE YARN TO FORM A BANK OF SIDEBY SIDE, DOWNWARDLY HANGING SKEINS, COMPLETELY IMMERSING THE BANK IN AFIRST DYE BATH TO APPLY A FIRST COLOR TO THE ENTIRE SKEIN, AND THENPARTIALLY IMMERSING THE BANK IN A SECOND DYE BATH OF A COLOR DIFFERENTFROM THAT OF THE FIRST DYE BATH AND SO THAT SOME OF THE SKEINS AREPARTIALLY IMMERSED FURTHER THAN OTHER TO THEREBY APPLY A SECOND COLORONLY TO THE IMMERSED PORTIONS OF THE SKEINS AND SUCH THAT THE SKEINSHAVE VARYING COLOR PATTERNS.
 2. The method as defined in claim 1comprising the further subsequent step of partially immersing the bankin a third dye bath of a color different from that of each of the firstand second dye baths and so that each skein is immersed to a level lessthan such skein was partially immersed in the second dye bath to therebyapply a third color only to the portions of the skeins immersed in thethird dye bath.
 3. The method as defined in claim 2 wherein some of theskeins are partially immersed in the third dye bath further than othersto additionally vary the color patterns of the skeins.
 4. The method asdefined in claim 3 wherein at least some of the skeins which werepartially immersed further in the second dye bath are not among thoseskeins which are partially immersed further in the third dye bath. 5.The method as defined in claim 4 wherein the step of bulking and heatsetting the yarn includes completely immersing the bank of skeins in aheated aqueous bath.
 6. The method as defined in claim 1 comprising thefurther step of bulking and heat setting the yarn prior to immersing thebank of skeins in the first dye bath.
 7. A method of producing spaceddyed yarns suitable for use in fabricating multi-colored tufted carpetsand the like, and characterized by deep, bright colors, high bulk, andhigh production capacity, and comprising the steps of arranging aplurality of skeins of textile yarn to form a bank of side by side,downwardly hanging skeins, completely immersing the bank in a first dyebath to apply a first color to the entire skeins, maintaining the bankimmersed in the first dye bath until such dye bath is substantiallyexhausted, at least partially removing the bank from the exhausted firstdye bath, adding a dyestuff to the exhausted first dye bath to form asecond dye bath adapted to color the yarn a second predetermined color,and partially immersing the bank in the second dye bath such that thesecond dye bath acts to color only the immersed portions of the skeins.8. the method as defined in claim 7 including the further step ofbulking and heat setting the yarn prior to immersing the bank of skeinsin the first dye bath.
 9. The method as defined in claim 8 wherein someof the skeins are partially immersed in the second dye bath further thanothers such that the skeins have varying color patterns.
 10. The methodas defined in claim 9 comprising the further subsequent step ofpartially immersing the bank in a third dye bath of a color differentfrom that of each of the first and second dye baths and so that eachskein is immersed to a level less than such skein was immersed in thesecond dye bath and further wherein some of the skeins are partiallyimmersed in the third dye bath further than others to thereby apply athird color only to the immersed portions of the skeins and to furthervary the color patterns of the skeins.
 11. A method of producing spacedyed yarns suitable for use in fabricating multi-colored tufted carpetsand the like, and characterized by deep, bright colors, high bulk, andhigh production capacity, and comprising the steps of arranging aplurality of skeins of textile yarn to form a bank of side by side,downwardly hAnging skeins, completely immersing the bank in a heatedaqueous bath to bulk and heat set the yarns, then completely immersingthe bank in a first dye bath to apply a first color to the entireskeins, maintaining the bank immersed in the first dye bath until suchdye bath is substantially exhausted, at least partially removing thebank from the exhausted first dye bath, adding a second dyestuff to theexhausted first dye bath to form a second dye bath adapted to color theyarn a second predetermined color, and partially immersing the bank inthe second dye bath such that the second dye bath acts to color only theimmersed portions of the skeins.
 12. The method as defined in claim 11comprising the further steps of removing the bank from the aqueous bathafter the bulking and heat setting has been substantially completed, andthen adding a dyestuff to the aqueous bath so that the first dye bath isformed from the aqueous bath.
 13. The method as defined in claim 12wherein some of the skeins are partially immersed in the second dye bathfurther than others such that the skeins have varying color patterns.14. The method as defined in claim 13 comprising the further subsequentsteps of maintaining the bank partially immersed in the second dye bathuntil such bath is substantially exhausted, at least partially removingthe bank from the exhausted second dye bath, adding a third dyestuff tothe exhausted second dye bath to form a third dye bath adapted to colorthe yarn a third predetermined color, and partially immersing the bankin the third dye bath so that each skein is immersed to a level lessthan such skein was immersed in the second dye bath and wherein some ofthe skeins are partially immersed in the third dye bath further thanothers to thereby apply a third color only to the immersed portions ofthe skeins and to further vary the color patterns of the skeins.
 15. Amethod of producing space dyed yarns suitable for use in fabricatingtufted carpets and the like, and characterized by deep, bright colors,high bulk, and the substantial elimination of streaks on the face of theresulting carpet caused by a similar repeating color pattern on theyarns, and comprising the steps of arranging a plurality of skeins oftextile yarn to form a bank of side by side, downwardly hanging skeins,completely immersing the bank in a dye bath, and then slowly withdrawingthe bank from the dye bath during the dyeing operation and whilemaintaining the bank in a tilted relationship with respect to the dyebath so that some of the skeins will be partially immersed further thanothers during the withdrawal operation and such that the skeins willhave a varying color pattern.
 16. The method as defined in claim 15comprising the further step of completely immersing the bank of skeinsin a heated aqueous bath to bulk and heat set the yarn prior toimmersing the bank in the dye bath.